It's such an honor to represent Rhode Island in the Senate. We may be a small state, but we all know one another, we know where things are and where they used to be, and we're fiercely proud of our unique and lasting history.

Listening to constituents is one of the most important -- and meaningful -- things I get to do as your Senator. Please take a moment to share your thoughts, ideas, and questions with me here, and my office and I will get back to you.

On Monday, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse paid a visit to TEDCO, Inc., a Cranston manufacturing company, and announced a piece of new legislation. The proposed bill, called the Job Creation Tax Credit Act, is geared toward helping small businesses expand their workforce, while putting the unemployed back to work.

The act would expand upon the HIRE Act of 2010 that offered tax breaks to small businesses that hired new employees between February 2010 and the start of 2011. The HIRE Act granted employers up to $1,000 in tax credits for each new hire. The Job Creation Tax Credit Act would offer tax credits of 15 percent of wages paid in 2011 and 10 percent of wages paid in 2012 for qualified new hires in those years.

Like in the HIRE Act, new hires under the Job Creation Tax Credit Act must have been previously unemployed for at least 60 days. Because of the refunds, Whitehouse hopes that small businesses will want to take on new hires and in turn benefit even if they are not currently turning a profit.